These battleships were methodically extracting Pluto's life energy, completely unaware that three "meteors" were rapidly approaching.
"Ejection countdown... three... two... one... eject!"
The three life capsules burst open simultaneously, launching Luffy, Ace, and Zoro toward Pluto with immense force.
Flying through a vacuum felt even more terrifying than traveling faster than light. There was no air, no sound—only silent darkness and the distant guidance of starlight.
But all three gritted their teeth and held on, because they knew Pluto was waiting to be rescued.
"Got them!" Ace pointed ahead. "Those black battleships!"
Dozens of Void Hunter warships formed a ring around Pluto, completely surrounding it. Each ship extended tentacle-like energy conduits, madly siphoning the planet's life essence.
The glow on Pluto's surface had already dimmed to the point of near invisibility.
"Can we make it in time?" Zoro tightened his grip on his sword hilt.
Fury burned in Luffy's eyes. "We have to! Lin Ye said that as long as there's hope, miracles can happen!"
Pluto's orbit, six hours later.
The three life capsules tore through the darkness and arrived at the battlefield on the edge of the Solar System.
The sight before them filled Luffy and the others with utter rage.
Pluto, which had once emitted a faint but constant blue-white glow, was now tightly bound by three enormous black tentacles. Each tentacle stretched for thousands of kilometers, its surface covered in countless sucker-like organs that were madly drawing out the planet's life essence.
The light on Pluto's surface was fading at a visible rate, like a living being slowly being strangled to death.
"Bastards!" Luffy roared inside his life capsule. "They're torturing Pluto!"
Three grotesquely shaped Void Battleships circled Pluto. Each vessel was over five kilometers long, with irregular forms and armor plates that slowly writhed as though